1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for the production of phenylacetic acid. More specifically, the invention relates to the formation of phenylsodium from a mixture of chlorobenzene, sodium, toluene, and catalyst with further catalytic conversion of phenylsodium to benzylsodium. The invention further relates to a process whereby the benzylsodium is used as a precursor to create phenylacetic acid.
2. Description of Related Art
Current processes for the production of phenylacetic acid using sodium-toluene, and chlorobenzene as precursors are slow and do not provide a high yield. Non-catalytic methods are not cost-effective, stable methods for the production of phenylacetic acid because of the long duration of the benzylchloride metaliation, benzylsodium production, and carboxylation stages. This makes the current processes expensive and time-consuming and therefore unsuited for continuous-process industrial production of phenylacetic acid.
Further, current processes for the production of phenylacetic acid can be used only under laboratory conditions aiming at producing small amounts of the product. Further, the purity of the product obtained is not high due to the formation of byproducts (phenylmalonic acid, etc.), which requires supplementary purification. This creation of byproducts reduces output to 65–70%. Further, current processes are environmentally unfriendly and are not capable of being carried out in a stainless steel reactor. Thus, the current processes for the production of phenylacetic acid are not economically expedient and fail to be useful as continuous methods of phenylacetic-acid industrial production.
A need exists, therefore, for a process that reduces the process time and increases the yield of phenylacetic acid, thereby providing a commercially-viable method for the production of phenylacetic acid.
All references cited herein are incorporated by reference to the maximum extent allowable by law. To the extent a reference may not be fully incorporated herein, it is incorporated by reference for background purposes and indicative of the knowledge of one of ordinary skill in the art.